Vinales says he should have been "stricter" with Yamaha
Yamaha MotoGP rider Maverick Vinales admits he was too easily swayed by others’ opinions and that he should have been “stricter” with his team this year.
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Pre-season favourite Vinales raced to an early championship lead with three victories in the opening five races, but was unable to maintain his form as the season wore on.
Yamaha’s struggles in low-grip conditions prompted a series of chassis changes that knocked the 22-year-old off his stride and resulted in his title challenge fading away.
He ended up a distant third in the points, finishing behind Honda's Marc Marquez and Ducati's Andrea Dovizioso.
Reflecting on the year, Vinales conceded he has to shoulder some of the blame for things going wrong, as he should have insisted on keeping the Yamaha more how he liked it.
“We are all partly to blame,” said the Spaniard. “I should have been stricter in asking for things, in relying on my feelings and not those of others.
“It's not that they didn't listen to me, but we haven't stopped testing things and we got confused. Maybe my mistake was not to continue with the old chassis.”
Despite the way his season tailed off, Vinales was eager to underline the fact he still has faith in his crew, led by Jorge Lorenzo’s long-time chief mechanic Ramon Forcada.
"I really trust the people I have in my side of the box, because if not this year I would have gone crazy,” added Vinales.
“I have very little patience. I always try to be in front, in all situations and in every practice session.”
He concluded: "To a certain extent I think the season has been good. The first half was a nine [out of 10] and the second was a four.
“If we had not made a great start to the season, it would have been impossible to finish third [in the championship].”
Additional reporting by Oriol Puigdemont
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